(Failed) Blockbuster Cinema: New York, New York

Abstract

New York, New York was instigated by producer Irwin Winkler, who commissioned a script from Earl MacRauch. Scorsese read about the script in The Hollywood Reporter. Scorsese thought of shooting the film as ‘a two-million-dollar, straight low budget picture’, ‘strictly a love story’ (Dugas 1977: 11). He envisaged Robert De Niro as the film’s male protagonist, Jimmy Doyle, and sought ‘an actress rather than a singer’ (ibid.) as the female lead, Francine Evans. This was exploded when Winkler sent the script to Liza Minnelli. Following her Best Actress Oscar for Cabaret (Bob Fosse, 1972), Minnelli was, in 1974, among Hollywood’s most bankable female stars.¹ Minnelli’s casting as Francine instantly increased the scale of the project and made the package of herself, De Niro and Scorsese eminently attractive to United Artists. Her singing ability led to greater emphasis being placed on the project’s musical elements. United Artists hired the musical supervisor of Cabaret, Ralph Burns, and engaged the film’s songwriting team, John Kander and Fred Ebb, to write four new songs. Evidently, the studio saw New York, New York as a chance to repeat Minnelli’s previous success.